‘Darling In The FranXX’ Episode 16 Death Flags Confirmed By New Interview – Will Zero-Two Survive The Ending?

A new interview provides some minor spoilers about 'Darling In The FranXX' Episode 17 and beyond.

A new interview provides some minor spoilers about 'Darling In The FranXX' Episode 17 and beyond.

Darling In The FranXX Episode 16 has anime fans worried about which characters will survive to the ending of the story. The anime now has a new opening animation and while most of Episode 16 was focused on slice-of-life antics, there were some notable death flags.

After all, this is a mecha anime so it seems inevitable that at least some of the characters will die. The first act was focused on introducing the characters and making audiences feel for these kids who are stuck in a dystopian society. The slow burn of plot development has revealed that the world that Squad 13 is protecting may not be as great as they had imagined. Episode 10, “The City of Eternity,” painted a picture of a sterile humanity which has lost emotional connections related to the family unit in favor of social engineering based on utility.

The second act delved deeper into personal narratives. Episode 15 neatly tied up several character story arcs with a satisfying conclusion. Now that the anime has reached the final third act of its 24 episodes, it’s probably time for someone to die.

What worries fans most is that Darling In The FranXX’s Zero-Two might be forced to sacrifice herself in some manner. The death flag was even made abundantly clear with the new Darling In The FranXX OP.

There were other blatant death flags in Darling In The FranXX Episode 16, like when Goro said, “you know, we were fighting battles in which we could die at any time, but not having to fight makes us all fidgety too, huh?” Unfortunately, a Newtype magazine interview about the Darling In The FranXX anime seems to be confirming these death flags since Japanese readers on Reddit have stated that the overall atmosphere of future episodes will be “bright,” but “the story [of the final arc] will be about the kids fighting to survive” and “hearts will be broken.”

“I wonder how many will survive in the end?” director Atsushi Nishigori said in the interview, according to Reddit. “No, I know, but it pains me.”

It’s also claimed that anime audiences can look forward to Ikuno taking a leading role in the story. The summary of the translated interview said that various hints placed in the first 13 episodes will soon be revealed. The Klaxosaur Princess that was mentioned near the ending of Darling In The FranXX Episode 16 “will play a role of utmost importance,” and some fans believe she could be either Zero-Two’s sister or mother. Otherwise, it’s claimed that the typical Japanese city seen in Episode 7 hints toward the real relationship between the Klaxosaurs and humanity.